A monument commemorates Hector Waller and all service personnel lost at sea.

Captain Hector Waller was widely considered to have been the outstanding naval officer of his generation. He was once described by his British Commander-in-Chief as one of the greatest captains who ever sailed the seas. He was the captain of the light cruiser HMAS Perth (D29) in the Second World War. In a naval career spanning almost 30 years, he served his country in two world wars. Waller went down with his ship (HMAS Perth accompanied by the USS Houston) when it encountered a Japanese invasion fleet consisting of two cruisers and twelve destroyers in the Battle of Sunda Strait at the beginning of March 1942.

From a crew of 682 men, only 229 returned to Australia. Many survivors of the HMAS Perth sinking had died as prisoners of war.